Triple Olympic Champion in 1500m Faith Kipyegon will compete in the fourth Absa Sirikwa Classic World Cross Country Tour this Saturday, February 22, at the Lobo Village, Kapseret, in Eldoret City.
Kipyegon, who is also a three-time world champion in 1,500m,and 5,000m world record holder, will be returning to Sirikwa after winning the 10km race during the 2nd edition in 2023.
She will face off in the 10 km event against the fastest half marathoner and 10 km world record holder, Agnes Jebet Ng’etich, and marathon world record holder, who is also the Chicago Marathon champion, Ruth Chepng’etich, in a star-studded elite list.
The 31-year-old opened her season in 2023 by claiming the Sirikwa title before going on to win two gold medals in 1,500m and 5,000m at the Budapest World Athletics Championship later in the year.
2022 World silver medallist in 5,000m and 2022 World silver medallist in 10,000m Stanley Waithaka will headline the 10km elite men’s race.
800m Olympic champion Emmanuel Wanyonyi will be out to defend his 2km loop title.
The competition will also feature strong contenders from Ethiopia, Uganda, Tanzania, and several European nations.
According to the organisers, over 500 local athletes will participate in the 6 main categories: under 20 km women and 8 km women, 10 km men and women, and the 2 km loop for men and women.
Saturday’s program will begin at 9am with the 2km run for boys and girls between 13 and 15 years, followed by the 1km run for boys and girls between 9 and 12 years at 10am, and concluding with the 500m run for boys and girls from 10:40am.
Core events will start at 12:10pm with the women’s loop 2km, followed by the men’s loop 2km 10 minutes later and the award ceremonies for the winners.
The 6km under 20 women will kick off at 1:15pm, followed by the 8km under 20 men 30 minutes later, and conclude with the medal ceremonies.
The 10 km women and men will wrap up the day’s events starting at 2:25 pm and 3:10 pm, respectively, before the medal ceremonies at 3:50 pm.
Winners of the 10 km races will receive Ksh 780,000, 650,000 for silver medallists, and 520,000 for bronze medalists.
The under-20 category winners will receive Ksh 162,500, the first runner-up Ksh 130,000, and the second runner-up Ksh 104,000.
The Absa Sirikwa Classic World Cross Country tour is the only gold label cross country event in the World Athletics Cross Country Series calendar in Africa and was introduced in 2022.
